My business is closing what next?

[whop]

For a few years I have run a business that has made me enough to each year to live fairly frugally (£27k/y), save enough to buy a small flat (alongside a small inheritance) and I have provided part time jobs with a decent wage to three women with disabilities.

Due to the COL crisis sales are down so much I cannot afford to pay myself anything and will have to close from next year. We can make it to March without paying myself anything but I am running low on savings. My staff don't know yet but I have arranged for them to be offered a similar job at a similar company and I know they will be well taken care of there.

I am going to have to either start job hunting soon or start another business. I didn't pay myself for the first two years of running my previous business so I know the former is most likely.

The problem I have is all the jobs on indeed.com make me feel a bit depressed. I was a waitress for three years before I started my business and I worked my socks off giving the very best customer service on a minimum wage zero hour contract where the manager didn't care. I was one day just never put on the rota again and I ended up taking a position as a content creator where I was a cog in a machine for a nice enough company. I then worked in a data analytics role where we had meeting after meeting and I was so bored.

I allow my three staff to choose their hours, have work from home flexibility, birthday/Christmas gifts and parties, end of year bonuses, great working environment, if they don't feel like coming in for the day, they can just move the hours to a different week/day. We all get along so well. It works because I trust them enormously.

I just don't know how to find an employer that offers the same level of flexibility as my business. We all worked flexible 30h per week. The 9-5 just really doesn't work for me. I have partnered with charities where I go into schools and talk about various topics such as working with individuals with disabilities, starting a business as a career choice, and other topics which would be too revealing to discuss. I do this for very small pay about £40 per session, but I absolutely love it would want to be able to keep doing this.

Does anyone have any ideas?

I also would like to settle down and have kids in the next five years so I want to gear up to be on a much higher salary by the time they come along.

What’s your skill set?

There seems to be a demand for virtual PAs, and I’d think this will go down more than up. If you are interested in disability then what about HR, or the civil service, or a job in a disability focused organisation.

If you can’t pay yourself, you need to close your business now, the more you get into debt, the less you will be able to start a new one, or look after the family you want to have. It’s great you have been able to find your staff jobs, but you need to take care of yourself first, not least because you are an entrepreneur who should create more jobs in future.

Whatever you do, I’d think about business ideas you can start on the side.

You sound like a great boss and I’m sorry it’s not worked out better. I have only ever been employed so my advice is probably limited. But all the true entrepreneurs that I know who have successful businesses have a vision of what they want to create/do and work night and day to achieve it. I suspect it’s hard to be the employer/owner if you don’t have a clear business idea and are not totally ruthless. You sound like an excellent manager rather than business owner.

id say work out what you want to do longer term but then get some skills and reasonable pay by working for a corporate and then set off again as owner in a few years when you’ve more experience/vision/plan. You sound so good with people that maybe an HR/change management type role could be good.

good Luck!

Thank you for taking the time to respond, it is very kind. I have enough money to go to march breaking even every month as long as I don't pay myself. I will probably close sooner.

I think I love what I do so much because I have been incredibly lucky to have three amazing women who I trust, care about, and we have so much fun. It's not the job I love but these women. I don't think I would thrive managing any old team. The disability aspect was rather accidental, I heard of a woman who needed a job to work around her disability, I was happy to provide that opportunity, and the other two women were referred as a result.

I am skilled in marketing and understand SEO etc, but I would like to try something completely different. I have found managing to only be fun when you like your team and I may not be lucky next time.

I am passionate about stories, which has nothing to do with my business. I love working creatively on my own or as a group and dislike being at my computer.

Some ideas (would help to know roughly what area you live in) but:

• outreach / external comms for an organisation that works with schools, disability issues or entrepreneurship (princes trust, trade associations, charities or any business)
• sales/fundraising role in the same (knowing how to write, market but also build relationships and makes a difference)
• associate trainer / learning and development roles (can pay well in house in corporate or freelance with flexibility)

thank you @bowlingalleyblues these are some great suggestions, I love the idea of a trainer.

All other suggestions are so welcome right now

Look at user researcher roles......... might be able to draw on your existing people skills.